For a software craftsman, focus is essential to build quality software. Interrupts are the enemy of focus. While not all interrupts are avoidable like meetings, interviews or even a colleague with a question. There are certain things that can be controlled like your inbox and distractions like news, facebook, twitter or any other form of content readily available. The question is how? A friend suggested a system which has worked great for me. It’s called the Pomodoro.

All a Pomodoro is a way to break down work   in chunks of  25 minutes before you take a break. I use this nifty web application called moosti that helps me keep time.  Ultimately it is a mental hack that allows me to give permission to myself to be present and to focus on the task at hand. With the timer counting down I tend to close all other tabs.

The added benefit of this system is it allows  me to measure how productive my day was. I just need to count the number of successful Pomodoro chunks in the day. I would love to know about how you focus on your tasks?